Senegambia and the Atlantic Slave Trade

Authoritative account of 400 years of West African history by a leading scholar.

Boubacar Barry (Author)

9780521597609, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 13 December 1997

388 pages, 16 b/w illus. 17 maps 4 tables
22.9 x 15.3 x 2.3 cm, 0.525 kg

"Exhibiting a thorough knowledge of the history of the region, the author narrates the extraordinary complexity and mobility of its population, particularly migrations, and the rise and demise of numerous states and rulers." Johannes Postma, The Historian

Boubacar Barry is one of the leading figures in West African historiography. His authoritative study of 400 years of Senegambian history is unrivalled in its detailed grasp of published and unpublished materials. Taking as its subject the vast area covering the Senegal and Gambia river basins, this book explores the changing dynamics of regional and Atlantic trade, clashes between traditional African and emergent Muslim authorities, the colonial system and the slave trade, and current obstacles to the integration of the region's modern states. Professor Barry argues cogently for the integrity of the Senegambian region as a historical subject, and he forges a coherent narrative from the dismemberment and unification which characterised Senegambia's development from the fifteenth to the nineteenth century. This newly-translated study is a vital tool in our understanding of West African history.

Preface
Part I. Senegambia from the Fifteenth to the Seventeenth Century: A Haven for Incoming Populations, A Station for Migrants on the Move: 1. Senegambia in the 15th and 16th centuries: dependence on the Sudan and the Sahara
2. Social dynamics in Senegambia
3. The Atlantic trading system and the reformation of Senegambian states from the 15th to the 17th century
4. The partition of the Senegambian coast in the 17th century
Part II. Senegambia in the Eighteenth Century: the Slave Trade, Ceddo Regimes and Muslim Revolutions: 5. The slave trade in the 18th century
6. The strengthening of Ceddo regimes in the 18th Century
7. Muslim revolutions in the 18th century
8. The impact of the slave trade: economic regression and social strife
Part III. Senegambia in the first half of the Nineteenth Century: 9. The crisis of the trans-Atlantic trading system and the triumph of legitimate trade in the first half of the 19th century
10. Popular rebellions and political and social crises in Futa Jallon
11. Futa Jallon expansion into the Southern Rivers region
12. The colony of Senegal and political and social crises in Northern Senegambia
13. Defeat of the holy warriors in Northern Senegambia
Part IV. Senegambia in the Second Half of the Nineteenth Century: Colonial Conquest and Resistance Movements: 14. Colonial imperialism and European rivalries in Senegambia
15. Last-Ditch Resistance Movements of Legitimist Rulers in Northern Senegambia
16. The conquest of the Southern Rivers Region
17. The balancing act of the Alamis of Timbo in their attempts to cope with centrifugal forces
18. Bokar Biro and the conquest of Futa Jallon
Conclusion.

Subject Areas: African history [HBJH]